accidentally left this post as a draft two weeks ago..whoops
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| Lunch at Gaffel |
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| Dom Rooftop View |
Our program travelled to Cologne last weekend and had a
packed and interesting itinerary. We started off with a tour of the city, led
by Mr. Jungeblodt, who pointed out many peculiar things and shared some fun
facts about Cologne. Legend has it, the city was built by hard working dwarves
who were scared away by the queen; this ultimately being the reason as to why
people from cologne nowadays are considered lazy. Fun fact number 2: K
ölners don’t
like people from the opposite side of the Rhine, due to events dating back to
the Roman occupation. After the tour, we ate lunch at Gaffel, then headed over
to an old Gestapo office and prison. It was chilling and sobering to see the cells
where innocent people were detained and to read their inscriptions covering the
walls. Next on our schedule was a rooftop tour of the dom. We began our tour
with a ride up a rickety construction elevator and ended with a breathtaking panoramic
view of the city. Most people left for Belgium after seeing the dom; however,
due to an unexpected airbnb cancellation, Maddie, Lauren, Katie and I stayed the weekend in Cologne, which ended up being a great time. Friday
night, after making the hour trek to our Airbnb on the opposite side of the
Rhine, we ate authentic Italian pizza, were given a free licorice shot, and purchased
a liter coke bottle of wine haha. The next day we stopped by the Schokoladenmuseum.
We visited several K
ölsch
breweries recommended by my host family on Saturday night, and hopped on a
train back to Bonn Hbf Sunday morning.
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| Colorful Buildings in Cologne |
School finally kicked in, as the homework load increased
this week. Despite having to dedicate more time to homework, I managed to spend
some quality time with my host family. On Tuesday night, I went to see a
Spanish classical concert at a music hall near the Beethoven Haus (My host dad
had an unexpected meeting, so I went with my host mom as his replacement). A
violist, piano player, Spanish guitarist, and singer performed several lovely
arrangements, including Flamenco music.
We went as a program to the House of History on Thursday. Dr.
Wasser led our group through the museum and explained how Germany transitioned
from World War 2 rubble to the world power it is today. That evening, I met up
with several other students at Sausalitos to celebrate my 20th birthday.
I got to try bartending for the night. I had a blast hanging out with everyone,
and some funny memories were made. Friday was filled with classes and a larger
group get together that night. I’ve enjoyed getting to know people I didn’t know
that well before the program.
My Saturday was spent working on homework. I had to get caught
up with it eventually. On Sunday, several AIB programs met up to watch the Bayer
Leverkusen match against FSV Mainz. Our seats were close to the field, and the
game was exciting to watch. Plus, the stadium sold some pretty good bratwurst.
Leverkusen won 2-0 and dominated FSV Mainz, even with the continuous roar from
the Mainz fan section. Woohoo Gehen Leverkusen!! I’m so pumped for our long excursion
to Vienna and weekend in Budapest! Time flies when you’re having fun.
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